The emergency services were scrambled to a street in Salford this morning after residents reported a loud bang - only to discover it was a man experimenting with expandable foam.
Police officers in marked and unmarked cars, paramedics and firefighters were called to Great Clowes Street near its junction with Camp Street in Lower Broughton just after 11am.
But the alert was called off when police found the real reason for the loud noise.
It wasn't a gun or a firework - but a plastic bag which had been filled with expandable foam.
A spokeswoman for Greater Manchester Police said: "It was just a local man that decided to fill a plastic bag with expanding foam, in essence it was like a balloon blowing up until it popped."
One resident said: "To be honest I thought it was a firework. They’re always going off around here any time of day. So didn’t think anything of it. Then when the fire service, police, ambulances, & unmarked police turned up I thought it was a serious incident. Thankfully not!"
Two fire engines were sent to the scene following reports of an explosion, according to a spokeswoman for Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service.
There was no fire and no-one was injured, they confirmed.
